Clarel, Kasha, and introducing my new friend

Even though I haven't really finished any projects, I wanted to log some updates since I haven't posted anything for a while. I do try to post at least once every month.

I have been out of town for the last 3 weeks, and what glorious 3 weeks they were. I was at a conference in Denmark for a week, followed by 2 weeks holiday in England. One thing I missed a lot was English countryside, so Sean and I did lot of hiking in Peak district and Cornwall. I love moorlands, and poor Sean had to tag along to 3 different moors. Below was Bodmin moor, which I didn't want to ever leave.

Much as I love the country, I wouldn't visit England without visiting London. I splurged at Liberty and bought 3 different Tana lawn. Now I have too much Tana lawn in my stash which I suppose is a good problem to have. The one on far right is a rayon I bought from Sew Over It. I'm thinking to make Sean a shirt with the green lawn on the left.

On knitting front, I'm making good progress on my latest knitting project. I found this Clarel jumper pattern on Free Vintage Knitting some time ago, and was instantly smitten. I envisioned it in tweed green or brown, and it had been in my queue for ever so long. In the end, instead of buying new yarn I used Drops Alpaca Tomato that had been in my stash for over a year. It's my first cable project, and I can see why people love this technique.

Eek look at all the ends! I've ordered some ball buttons from Etsy, and cannot wait to see whether they go well with the jumper. The tabs are just placed on top, not sewn in yet. The sleeves were as always a pain, and I had to redo the sleeve head 3 times, but at last they're done and being blocked. This will make a nice Christmas jumper.

I'm also making headway with Kasha. Pictured below with another Liberty fabric in my stash.

When I started the project I was intimidated by the lace pattern. I thought I would never get the hang of it and feared I'd have to refer to the chart for every row. Well yes, I do have to refer to the chart for every row, but the lace pattern is surprisingly memorizable. The danger is when you begin to think you got it and start to relax. That's when the mistakes inevitably happen.

And last but not least, a small cause of excitement - I finally bought a dress form! I've been stalking Craigslist since last year, and finally spotted one that fitted the bill perfectly. I don't think I'll use it for fitting, since the measurements are 'a little' different from mine (the ridiculously small waist, for one). But my goodness, is it fun to model my handmade items on it. They look 10+ times better than on me.